China News Service Ottawa, December 13 (Reporter Yu Ruidong) The Chinese Embassy in Canada held a reception for the 45th anniversary of the establishment of the Canada-China Council (CCBC) on the evening of the 12th. Chinese Ambassador to Canada Cong Peiwu expressed his respect and congratulations to the CCBC and its member companies on the transition from "not confused" to "knowing the destiny of heaven", and explained what the "mandate of heaven" is for China-Canada relations.
Former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who attended the event, said he was "very proud of the close relationship with China" during his tenure as Prime Minister of Canada.
On the evening of December 12, local time, the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa, Canada, held a reception for the 45th anniversary of the establishment of the Canada-China Council (CCBC). The picture shows former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who is about to celebrate his 90th birthday, attending the reception and delivering a speech. Photo by China News Service reporter Yu Ruidong.
Chrétien recalled that after forming a cabinet, he told his colleagues that Canada's future lay in the Pacific, and that the largest country in the Pacific region was China. When he led the "Canadian national team" to visit China, the visit was a great success with a large number of representatives from business, academia, and political circles. He said he was glad to have established good relations with China.
Chrétien, who is about to turn 90, served as Prime Minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. He visited China six times during his tenure.
In 1978, China made a major strategic decision of reform and opening up, and Canadian entrepreneurs represented by Paul de Marré established the Canada-China Council with the mission of promoting economic and trade exchanges between the two countries.
Cong Peiwu said in his speech that over the past 45 years, CCBC has been committed to promoting economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, promoting people-to-people exchanges, and enhancing people's well-being, and has played an important role as a bridge and link for the development of bilateral relations. After citing the economic and trade data of China and Canada, he pointed out that the achievements of the past 45 years have fully proved that the economies of China and Canada are highly complementary. The tremendous development of China's reform and opening up in the past 45 years is an opportunity rather than a challenge for Canada.
Cong Peiwu said that over the past 45 years, in response to some people's doubts about whether China and Canada can live in peace with two countries with different systems, the CCBC and its Chinese partners have overcome various challenges and moved forward, and further realized the "destiny" of achieving win-win cooperation on the basis of mutual respect. In fact, the "Mandate of Heaven" of China-Canada relations is very similar to the "Mandate of Heaven" of CCBC – mutual respect, seeking common ground while reserving differences, and win-win cooperation. He expressed the hope that the Canadian side and the Chinese side will work together to bring bilateral relations back on the right track at an early date based on the above-mentioned principles.
On the evening of December 12, local time, the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa, Canada, held a reception for the 45th anniversary of the establishment of the Canada-China Council (CCBC). The picture shows Chinese Ambassador to Canada Cong Peiwu attending the reception and delivering a speech. Photo by China News Service reporter Yu Ruidong.
Olivier Demare, Chairman of the CCBC Board of Directors, said that despite the challenges faced in recent years, the goal of pursuing prosperity, sustainability and peaceful coexistence remains unchanged. This is why the Canada-China bilateral ** volume hit a new high in 2022, and the trend of bilateral ** in 2023 will remain generally positive.
He believes that the economic opportunities presented by action on climate change are historic for both countries. This is an opportunity not to be missed to push for further cooperation between the two sides. Cooperation in this area is also an example of "how bilateral relations can and must develop".
Over the past 45 years, China-Canada economic and trade cooperation has continued to expand in scale and scope. The value of bilateral cargo** has grown from hundreds of millions of Canadian dollars in the 70s to nearly 130 billion Canadian dollars in 2022. China has maintained its position as Canada's second largest partner for many years.
The reception was attended by Canadian politicians, including a number of U.S. senators, representatives of the CCBC Board of Governors and member companies. Headquartered in Toronto, CCBC currently has offices in Vancouver, Montreal, Calgary, Halifax, Canada, and Beijing and Shanghai, China. The association has more than 300 member companies. (ENDS).